WNYT.com

Snow banks hinder travel for motorists, pedestrians

ALBANY - Now that snow has been cleared from area roadways, what plow operators have pushed to the side, continue to cause problems for area motorists and pedestrians, snow banks.

Because there's no other place to put it, and because there's too much of it anyway, the snow banks are left in the wake of the storm.

"We just have to go through the process of dealing with mother nature," says Christopher Leake of Albany, "There's no circumventing that."

"It is what it is," adds Paul Nichols, also an Albany resident.

But sometimes it's much more than it is. Sometimes snow banks are three or four feet high. At some intersections, they could be eight to ten feet or more. And if you were to glance at the parking lots at any of the local shipping center, you might find mountains of snow twenty feet high or taller.

"When a business owner or homeowner is kind enough to cut a path through, that's what you look for," Nichols says.

His is a pedestrian's point of view. The view from behind the wheel of an automobile is much different, especially since some of the snow banks are so big, and in such a position, the driver can't see oncoming traffic.

"It was especially tricky this morning," said Khamel Abduli, "There was a fair amount of snow on the ground and that made it fairly tough to navigate the roads."

"That's like when you're at the mall and you're parked between two SUVs and you have a sedan," is how Nichols describes the snow bank dilemma.

"I wouldn't say I'm a snow bank hater, but they definitely make life a little more complicated," Says Christopher Leake.

More complicated, more treacherous, and perhaps, more nerve wracking; so for now, exercise caution and use patience waiting for the remedy.